Welcome to another Tuesday celebrating bookish events: First Chapter/Intros, now hosted by Socrates Book Reviews; and Teaser Tuesdays hosted by The Purple Booker.
Today’s feature is one of my new books: The Foundling, by Ann Leary.
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Intro:
I’ve been told that my mother had a wonderful sense of humor. Also that she was pretty. But most people recall her wit first, and her easy laughter, and because of this I’ve always had a better sense of how she felt than how she looked.
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Teaser:
My pulse quickened. Had Bertie just referred to a woman as a bitch in front of Dr. Vogel? I winced.
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Synopsis: It’s 1927 and eighteen-year-old Mary Engle is hired to work as a secretary at a remote but scenic institution for mentally disabled women called the Nettleton State Village for Feebleminded Women of Childbearing Age. She’s immediately in awe of her employer—brilliant, genteel Dr. Agnes Vogel.
Dr. Vogel had been the only woman in her class in medical school. As a young psychiatrist she was an outspoken crusader for women’s suffrage. Now, at age forty, Dr. Vogel runs one of the largest and most self-sufficient public asylums for women in the country. Mary deeply admires how dedicated the doctor is to the poor and vulnerable women under her care.
Soon after she’s hired, Mary learns that a girl from her childhood orphanage is one of the inmates. Mary remembers Lillian as a beautiful free spirit with a sometimes-tempestuous side. Could she be mentally disabled? When Lillian begs Mary to help her escape, alleging the asylum is not what it seems, Mary is faced with a terrible choice. Should she trust her troubled friend with whom she shares a dark childhood secret? Mary’s decision triggers a hair-raising sequence of events with life-altering consequences for all.
Inspired by a true story about the author’s grandmother, The Foundling offers a rare look at a shocking chapter of American history. This gripping page-turner will have readers on the edge of their seats right up to the stunning last page…asking themselves, “Did this really happen here?”
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Would you keep reading?
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SNOW SPARKS 
Laurel, I just finished this (no review yet) and thought it was quite good. I loved that it was based on a true story too. enjoy
Here is my pick:http://bibliophilebythesea.blogspot.com/
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Thanks, Diane, I enjoy this author, and true stories tug at my heartstrings. Enjoy yours.
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This sounds really interesting. I don’t usually read this type of genre but the excerpts grabbed my attention.
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Thanks, Yvonne, I do hope to like this one. Enjoy your pick.
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